The argument that corruption is merely part of the Latin American culture, and an unavoidable part of doing business in the region, holds little sway in advocating that nothing should be done to punish and deter the practice. As Latin American economies increasingly mesh with the rest of the world, important transactions are now rarely conducted exclusively within the confines of any one country.

In drawing generalisations about the region, it is often easy to overlook the specific steps that individual countries are taking to deal with, or respond to, allegations of official corruption. Every country follows a different approach. Their responses to claims of corruption or lax enforcement of anti-corruption law are as varied as each country’s unique leadership.